Dining-room tramway.



No, 688,277.- Patented Dec. 3, I90l.

r A. L. WILLOUGHBY.

DINING ROOM TBAIIWAY.

(Application filed Apr. 6, 1901.)

' 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

A TTORNE).

TH: nonms PETERS co,, worum'nu. WASHINGTON, n. c.

Patented Dec. 3, 190i.-

' A. L. WILLOUGHBY.

DINING ROOM TRAMWAY.

(Application filed Apr. 8, 1901.)

2 Sheafs-Sheei 2.

v (No Modal.)

fuzwmngs gzTzns co. PHOTO LITHO., wAsmnown. I104 UNITED STATES AMANDA L.WILLOUGHBY, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

PATENT OFFICE.

DINING-ROOM TRAMWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 688,2 77, datedDecember 3, 1901.

Application filed April 6, 1901. Serial No. 54,728. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AMANDA L. WILLOUGH BY, a citizen of the UnitedStates of America, residing at Denver, in the county of Arapahoe andState of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inDining- Room Tram ways; and I do declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make-and use thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to theletters and figures of reference marked thereon,

empty dishes are returned from the VSJ'lOIIS' points in the dining-roomto the kitchen, thus obviating the necessity of employing persons toperform this labor.

My object is to provide an apparatus of this class which shall be simplein construction,

economical in cost, reliable, durable, and effi cient in use; and tothese ends the invention consists of the'features, arrangements, andcombinations hereinafter described and claimed, all of which will befully understood by reference .to the accompanying drawings, in which isillustrated an embodiment thereof.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a top or plan view of my improvedapparatus,partly broken away. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same,

partly in section. Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section takenthrough the upper part of the apparatus, showing a single section orportion of the tramway, the parts being shown on a larger scale. Fig. iis a cross-section taken through the upper part of the apparatus, thesupporting standards or posts being broken away above the lower part ofthe structure. Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line a; 00, Fig. 3. Fig.6 is a section. taken through one of the trays. Fig. 7 is afragmentarysection of the same shown on alarger scale. Fig. Sis a diagrammatic planview of the apparatus. This view is intended to show the location andrelative size of the various includes a series of yokes 5 5 6 6, and 7 7"according as they belong to the different sections or parts of thetramway. In the drawings three sections (designated, respectively, bythe reference characters A, B, and O) are shown. The yokes of section Aare designated 5, those of section B are-designated 6, while those ofsection 0 are designated 7. There may be any desired number of sections,according to the number of stations or points where trays are to bestopped, with which the tramway is provided. The yokes 5, 6, and 7 areupper yokes belonging to the outgoing portion of the tramway,while theyokes 5, 6,

and 7 are corresponding lower yokes belonging to the tray-returningportion of the tramway. Each upper yoke is located directly above itscorresponding lower yoke. Each pair of upper and lower yokes ismounted-on two vertical posts or standards 8, which may be composed ofgas-pipe or other suitable material. slightly in construction, and theyokes 5, 6 and 7 are substantially of the same construction as theircorresponding upper yokes. I

will first describe a yoke 5 (see Fig. 4.) and then point out thedifferences between it and the other yokes. v

Each yoke 5 is provided on each side with a socket 5 into which theupper extremity of a post orstandard 8 is fitted. Between the two posts8 are two depending yoke parts 5, connected by an intermediate bridgepart 5. In each part 5 are journaled three rollers 9. The parts 5 formsupports 0r keepers for these rollers. Above each socket 5 is located ahorizontal sleeve 5 through which passes a horizontal frame-bar 10,which is preferably tubular or composed of gas-pipe. At

the extremities of the bridge part 5 are 10- The yokes 5, 6, and 7differ only cated two vertical flanges 5, while adjacent each sleeve 5is located a lug 5 forming a connection between the sleeve 5- and thebody of the part 5 and having a vertical inner wall. Between thevertical wall of the lug 5" and the flange 5 of each part 5 are locatedfour metal strips 12, which are set into grooves formed in the top' ofeach part 5 of the yoke or fastened thereto in any other suitablemanner. These strips 12 are separated sufficiently to form runways forcarrier-belts 13, 13, and 13, which are supported by pins 14, whoseextremities are supported by the strips. These belts carry the trays 15.The only difference between the belts is in regard to their length. Thetwo inner belts, which are designated 13, carry the smaller trays, orthose which travel only the length of the. first section and stop at thefirst station, or that designated A. The two middle belts 13, one oneach side, carry the trays next larger in sizeand stop at the secondstation,(designated B,) while the two outermost belts 13 carry thelargest trays, which stop at the third station, (designated O.) Thesebelts are all endless. The belts 13 at the end of section A remote fromthe front extremity of the tramway pass down around the two innermostrollers 9 of one of the yokes 5 and thence toward the front end of thestructure, passing above all the rollers of the intermediate yokes lyingin their path. These rollers form the support for the lower part of thetraveling belt.

Attention is called to the fact that in Fig. 4 the yoke located at theforward extremity of the tramway, or that farther to the right in Figs.1, 2, 3, and 8, is shown. The rollers of this yoke, which are designated9, are of the larger size. This is also true of one pair of rollers ofthe terminal yoke of each section. For instance, the two innermostrollers of the rear terminal yoke of section A (see Fig. 8) are thelarge rollers and are designated 9. This is also true of the inner pairof rollers of the corresponding yoke of section B and of the two rollersof the rear terminal yoke of section 0. The other yokerollers are ofsmaller size and designated by the reference character 9. a

The yokes 6 are located beyond the station A and are exactly like theyokes 5, already described, except that they have only six strips 12,forming four runways for the belts 13 and 13. Hence these yokes 6 haveonly four rollers. The belts 13 pass down under the two rollers 9 of theyoke located at the rear end of the section B and thence back to thefront end of the tramway, passing above all the rollers in their pathmounted on the yokes 5 and 6. Beyond the station 13 the yokes 7 areprovided with only two strips 12 on each side, forming runways for theoutermost belts 13. These yokes 7 have only four rollers each, and whenthe carrier-belts 13 reach the terminus of the section 0 they pass downaround the rollers 9 of the termi nal yoke 7 and thence forward abovethe outermost rollers lying in the path of all the yokes 5, 6, and 7.

The tramway may of course be made of any desired length and may have anynumber of stations or sections. In the drawings three sections areshown. It is evident that if another section were added the yokes of thesections A B 0 would each be provided with two additional rollers andtwo additional runways or channels for the extra belts which would thenbe required. The trays 15 rest on the belts and are carried alongthereby, as heretofore described. These trays may be made of any desiredsize consistent with convenience. The bottom ofeach tray is providedwith runners or supports 15, which project into the runways toengagement with the belts. As shown in the drawings, each of theserunners consists of two separated flanges 15, attached to the bottom ofthe tray, and a rubber tube 15, attached to the bottom of the traybetween the flanges and projecting below the flanges to engageinentwiththe belt. This construction provides the tray with a yielding support;but it must be understood that any other suitable construction of trayadapted to rest upon the belts and be carried thereby may be employed.Provision must be made for stopping the trays at the various stations,and this construction will now be described.

At the end of each section the supportingpins 14 are absent, and twopairs of rollers 16 andliareemployed. Theportionsofthetramway wherethese rollers are located are called stations. At each of these stationseach belt 13, 13, or 13, as the case may be, passes over the roller 16and down under the roller 17 and thence around a roller 9 of theterminal yoke of the section. When the belt passes downward beneath theroller 17, it leaves the tray, and the latter stops at the station andmay be removed by the person in attendance. The upper belts of thetramway are intended to carry the trays containing the filled dishes,while the lower belts are for carrying the trays containing the emptydishes back to the kitchen. The returning trays travel the entiredistance from the points where they are set upon the belts to the frontend of the structure. The lower part of the tramway is provided withstations and rollers 16 and 17, the same as the upper portion. Thetrays, instead of being landed at these stations, are set in position atthe station and remain still until they are moved out upon the travelingbelts as the latter emerge from beneath. At each station the strips 12are provided with guide-plates 18, which retain the belt in place afterpassing below the spacing-strips 12. At the front end of the tramway asort of chute 19 is located. This chute is provided with channelsregisteringwith the belt-runways and containing rollers 20, whichfacilitate the movement of the trays to the carrier-belts. This chute ishighest at its forward extremity,

or that remote from the body of the tramway, and its inclination is suchas to cause the trays to move to position on the belts. At the forwardextremity of the lower or trayreturning portion of the tramway a similarchute 22 is located and downwardly inclined from the tramway extremityto receive the trays as they leave the belts on the return trip anddischarge them at a convenient point.

The forward extremity of the tramway is provided with a bracket 23, inwhich is journaled a shaft 24:, upon which is made fast a pulley 25,connected with a lower pulley 26 by a crossed belt 27. The pulley 26 isfast on a shaft 28, which carries a larger pulley 29, operated by a belt30. The shafts 24 and 28 both carry pulleys 31. These pulleys 31 actuatethe carrier-belts in opposite directions, since the' belt 27 is crossed,as before stated.

From the foregoing descriptionthe opera tion of my improved tramway, aswell as its use, will be readily understood. Assuming that the upper andlower carrier-belts are in motion and moving in opposite directions,trays containing thefilled dishes are placed on the chute 19, by whichthey are conducted to the carrier-belts. The smallest-sized trays engagethe belts 13 and are landed at the first station A, since the beltengaging the rollers 16 and 17 passes beneathand leaves the tray, whichmay then be removed from the belt. The next larger tray will engage thebelts 13 and stop at the second station 13', while the largest tray willengage the bolts 13 and stop at the last station. After the trayscontaining the filled dishes have been unloaded they are filled withempty dishes and placed upon the belts of the lower or returningpart ofthe tramway and carried'directly to the dischargechute 22.

Attention is called to the fact that the lower yokes 5 6 and 7 of thetramway are provided with vertical sleeves 5 through which the posts 8pass, while the upper extremities of these posts engage sockets 5 of theyokes.

It must be understood that my invention does not require that the traysintended to stop at the diiterent stations be made of different sizes,though in the specification they are referred to for convenience as ofdifterent size. It is evident that the trays may all be made of the samesize, but with runners or bottom projections which engage the belts,properly spaced or separated to engage the different pairs of belts l3,l3, and 13, re-

spectively.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. In a dining-roomtramway the combination with dish trays or receptacles and a supportingstructure, of carrying means upon which the trays rest, the said meansbeing arranged to pass below its normal tray-supporting plane at astation or point where the trays are intended to stop.

2. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with a supporting structureand a tray porting plane at the stations or points where the trays areintended to stop.

4. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with supporting posts orstandards and suitable trays or receptacles, of yokes mounted uponsaidposts, endless belts for carrying the trays, and means mounted on theyokes for supporting and guiding the belts.

5. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with supporting posts orstandards and dish trays or receptacles, of yokes mounted upon saidposts, endless belts for carrying the trays, means mounted on the yokesfor supporting and guiding the belts, and means for causing the belts topass below their normal tray-supportingplane at the various stations orpoints where the trays are to stop.

6. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with dish receptacles ortrays,and posts or standards, of yokes mounted on the posts, endlesscarrier-belts upon which the trays rest, means mounted on the yokesforming runways for the tray-carrying portion of the belts, and rollersmounted on the yokesfor supporting the lower or idle portion of thebelts.

7. The combination with the supporting posts or standards, of yokesmounted on said posts, endless belts, spacing-strips attached to theyokes and forming runways for the belts, the yokes being provided withkeepers located below the runways, and rollers journaled in the keepersfor supporting the idle lower portion of the belts.

8. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with supporting posts orstandards, of yokes mounted thereon, endless belts, beltrunwayssupported by the yokes, supporting belt-rollers located below therunways and journaled in the yokes, and means for guiding the beltsbelow the supporting-plane of the runways at certain points or stations.

9. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with supporting posts orstandards, of a series of yokes mounted on the standards,horizontal barsconnecting the yokes, endless belts, belt-runways mounted on the yokes,and means for guiding the belts below the beltsupporting plane of therunways, at the various stations or. points where the devices carried bythe belts are to stop.

10. In a dining-room tramway, the combination with supporting posts orstandards, of upper and lower yokes mounted on the standards, upper andlower endless belts, belt-runcausing the belts of the upperandloweryokes to travel in opposite directions for the purpose set forth.

11. In a dining-room tramway system, the combination with supportingposts or standards, of yokes mounted thereon, endless carrier-beltsmounted on the yokes, the tramway being arranged in sections, with atray landing or stopping station at one end of each section, there beingas many pairs of carrierbelts mounted on the yokes of the first section,as there are stations, and each successive section toward the rearhaving a pair of carrier-belts less than the preceding section, thetray-engaging portions of the carrier-belts being all arranged in thesame plane except at the stations, and the individual belts of thevarious pairs, being unequally separated to accommodate difierent trays.

12. In a dining-room tramway system, the combination with supportingposts or standards, of upper and lower yokes mounted on the posts,endless carrier-belts mounted on the yokes, and means for moving thebelts simultaneously in opposite directions, both the upper and lowerportions of the tramway being arranged in sections, the first sectionhaving the carrier-belts of all the sections, and the carrier-beltsdiminishing in number at the various sections toward the rear, thearrangementbein g such that one pair of belts extends the entire lengthof the tramway, while the individual belts of the various pairs areunequally separated for the purpose set forth.

13. In a dining room tramway system, the combination with asupporting-frame, and dish-trays, of yokes mounted thereon and providedwith runways, endless tray-carrying belts engaging said runways, saidbelts being arranged in pairs, and the individual belts of each pairbeing unequally separated, and the various pairs of belts being ofunequal length whereby they are adapted to land trays at variousstations along the line of the tramway.

14. In a dining-room tramway the combination with supporting posts orstandards, of yokes mounted thereon, runways carried by the yokes,endless tray-carrying belts mounted on the runways, and arranged inpairs, the individual belts of the various pairs being unequallyseparated, and the pairs of belts being of unequal length, the tramwaybeing provided with stations, rollers located at the stations andarranged to guide a pair of belts below the normal tray-supporting planeof the belts, at each station, whereby a tray is stopped, the lower idleportion of the belts being supported by the yoke-rollers.

15. In a dining-room tramway system, the combination with supportingposts or standards, of a number of yokes, each yoke being provided witha socket on each side in which the top of a post fits, depending keeperslocated between the posts, and connected bya bridge-piece, the keepersbeing open, rollers journaled in the keepers, runways mounted on theyokes above the keepers, and endless belts engaging the runways androllers.

In testimony whereof 'I aifix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

AMANDA L. WILLOUGHBY.

Witnesses:

DORA G. SHIoK, MARY C. LAMB.

